Are you a chronic worrier? Many people fall into the trap of continually worrying about actual and perceived problems. The worry ends up draining their energy and wreaking havoc with their emotional state.

Excessive worrying can cause excessive stress, and we all know now that stress is the number one cause of many debilitating diseases and medical conditions. In short, if you are a constant worrier, you are also under tremendous physiological and mental stress. This can have a long effect on your health and emotional well-being.

Are you a worrier?

Most people would deny that they are worriers. And yes, some worrying may benefit a person –but only if they worry just a little so they can get started on solving their problems.

The main problem here is that people tend to worry continuously, for days or even weeks, without diverting that energy to actually solving the problem that they’re worrying about. Excessive worrying usually paralyzes people into inaction, and the cycle continues without them knowing it.

Answer the questions below to find out more about your worrying habits:

1: Do you dwell on the past and often think of ‘better times’ in the past? Are you totally uninterested in what is going on in the present and think this is the worst time for you?
2: Do you often worry about things you did in the past? Do you feel things would be better if you could go back in time and change things? Do you often think about ‘what if’s’ and ‘would have’s’?
3: In the morning do you look forward to making the most of your day or are you pained at the fact that you did not achieve what you wanted to over the past 24 hours?
4: Do you think you could achieve more if you focused on the present instead or the past and the future?
5: Would you feel better knowing that you have everything you need to resolve any problems you have in the present?
6: If you have something important to do, do you do it as soon as possible, or do you postpone it to sometime in the future, thinking about it but not actually doing it?

If you answered ‘yes’ to most of the questions you could be a chronic worrier. If you answered yes to most of the questions, it is clear that you must stop dwelling on the past and the future and instead focus your energy on what you can do at the present time. It is important to always lock out domains like the past so that our full attention can be turned to the present, where we are right now. The present is our rightful domain and thus, we must do everything to enrich our lives now and stop worrying so much.